Adjustable cleanout



June 14, 1966 J. H. SCHMID ADJUSTABLE CLEANOUT Filed June 19, 1963 INVEN TOR.

JOHN H. scmvno IIIII'IIlI-III AQQNQS United States Patent 3,255,912 ADJUSTABLE CLEANOUT John H. Schmid, Erie, Pa., assignor to Zurn Industries, Inc., Erie, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Filed June 19, 1963, Ser. No. 288,967 2 Claims. (Cl. 2203.4)

This invention relates to drains and, more particularly, to drain line cleanouts which are to be installed in floors for access to drainage piping below the floors.

The cleanout disclosed herein is especially useful when a finished floor is to be installed subsequent to the installation of the drain in a subfloor or the like.

In fitting cleanouts, if a neat acceptable installation is to be achieved, the top surface of the cleanout and cover must be perfectly flush with the final finished floor surface. The installation problem is apparent when it is noted that the waste line location below the finished floor is not exact and will vary from one cleanout opening to the next. Also, the exact height of the finished floor itself can vary from its specified elevation enough to prevent a flush cleanout installation. This may occur even when the cleanout has been perfectly located in accordance with the building plans. The solution to the problem in the past has relied upon the ingenuity of the mechanic with makeshift arrangements. The results have usually been less than perfect and the labor involved in tinkering with the drain to get the top flush with the finished floor has often resulted in increased costs.

In cleanouts previously available, a few attempts have been made to provide some adjustability. The adjustability provided has not usually been usable at the time it was needed. Some cleanouts provide cutoff grooves in the lower end of the cleanout which allow the body to be cut off to a length to'bring 'the top of the unit to approximately the height required. This, of course, is of no value in the final adjustments during or after a cement floor has been poured around the sleeve.

In some units, a top sleeve or frame with set screws has been provided which can be moved up or down on the cleanouts. Others provide for shimming under the top frame. In any case, prior cleanout adjustments had to be made before the floor slab was poured since set screws or lugs are not accessible under concrete even if the concrete is not set and certainly not if it has set. Also, once the floor slab has set, in no design has it been possible to get final adjustment to accommodate variations in floor finish thickness. Usually, this latter variation is small but variation does occur even with contact floor finishes and final adjustment to accommodate this is needed.

In the cleanout disclosed herein, all of the necessary adjustments at all stages of construction are provided. High labor costs and makeshift innovations by the mechanicare not needed. A removable cover is maintained to insure easy access to the piping for the life of the installation. In the device disclosed herein, the threaded sleeve can be turned to move itup or down in the body of the cleanout to raise or lower the head or cover. The removable thread shield which is a cylindrical collar or ring is slipped snugly over the male threads of the sleeve and is wide enough to extend beyond the outer edge of the sleeve. It is also rigid enough to hold back the wet concrete but flexible enough to be easily removed once the concrete is set.

The assembly is installed by placing the cleanout body in place and pouring the rough concrete slab around the cleanout body. The body may be cut off prior to pouring to bring the top of the body three-quarter inch or more below the proposed finished floor and the top of the sleeve above the final floor level. This allows considerable latitude of thickness for the finished floor and so 3,255,912 Patented June 14, 1966 makes the body length much less critical than with most previous cleanouts. The body is then caulked in place and the rough fioor slab is poured. At the time of applying the floor finish, the shield is removed and discarded and the sleeve is easily turned to the exact height required, utilizing the clearance cavity formed by the shield in the rough floor.

In the event that no finished floor is used, the thread shield can be used as above or the following procedure followed. The body length is determined and the body is caulked in place as aforesaid. Before pouring the rough slab, the thread shield is discarded and the head set to the height of the proposed slab and then the slab is poured. While the concrete is still in fluid state, the head may be easily turned up or down to the exact height required to correct for any errors. This method requires adjustment while the concrete is wet and is usually less convenient than working on top of a dry slab.

No makeshift arrangements with blocks or wedges are required to support the sleeve in place to the correct height during the various stages of installation. All in stallations of the cover are accessible from the top and nothing is buried in the concrete after it is poured. Complete adjustability at all stages of construction is available.

It is, accordingly, an object of the present invention to provide an improved cleanout.

Another object of the invention is to provide, in combination, a floor, cleanout, and shield ring for use during installation.

A further object of the invention is to provide a cleanout which is simple in construction, economical to manufacture, and simple and easy to install.

With the above and other objects in view, the present invention consists of the combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter more fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawing and more particularly pointed out in the appended claims, it being understood that changes may be made in the form, size, proportions, and minor details of construction without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

In the drawing:

FIG. 1 is a side view partly in cross section of a cleanout according to the invention installed in a rough floor; and

FIG. 2 is a cross sectional view of the cleanout in a finished floor.

' Now with more particular reference to the drawing, a cleanout is shown made up of a hollow body 10. The body 10 has a reduced size portion which is threaded at 19 and receives a closure 13 with a seal 16 therebetween.

The upper end of the body 10 is of slightly larger internal diameter and is internally threaded at 20 and the internal threads threadably receive a sleeve 11. The sleeve 11 has an external threaded portion and it engages the threads 20 and also receives a shield 15. The upper end of the sleeve 11 has a flange 21 thereon which is received in a groove 22 on a ring 23. The ring 23 has a recessed seating portion 24 which receives a cover 12.

The cover 12 is disk shaped and has a central hole which receives a headed screw 14. The headed screw 14 threadably receives the closure 13 and when the screw is tightened in place, it holds the cover 12 to the closure 13 in firm engagement with the recessed seating portion 24.

In installation, the body 10 will be installed with an upper surface 25 terminating slightly below the planned top surface of a rough floor 17. Then the sleeve 11 will be installed in the body with the shield 15 thereon. The shield will be slightly thicker than the planned finished floor 18. The shield may have an inside diameter equal to or slightly greater than the outside diameter of the 3 sleeve 11. The outside diameter of the shield 15 will be equal to or slightly greater than the diameter of the ring 23.

The body 10 of the cleanout and the sleeve 11 as well as the cover 12 and closure 13 can be made of conventional materials. The shield 15 will be made of a frangible material such as an expanded plastic material which can easily be removed from the cement after the rough floor has been poured.

After the rough floor has been poured and the shield 15 has been removed, the finished floor 13 may be installed and the sleeve 11 tightened down :to bring the top surface of the cover 12 to position flush with the top surface of the finished floor 18.

The foregoing specification sets forth the invention in its preferred practical forms but it is understood that the structure shown is capable of modification within a range of equivalents without departing from the invention which is to be understood is broadly novel as is commensurate with the appended claims.

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:

1. A cleanout comprising an internally threaded hollow body,

an externally threaded sleeve threadably and vertically adjustably received in the upper end of said hollow body,

a cover on said sleeve,

a shield ring around said threaded sleeve in intimate contact therewith,

said shield ring being equal to or greater in vertical dimension than the thickness of a finished floor adapted to be used with said cleanout,

said shield ring being of greater outside diameter than the outside diameter of said hollow body, said shield ring extending outwardly beyond the outer peripheral edges of said hollow body,

said shield ring being adapted to be removed after said cleanout is installed and after said finished floor is installed,

and flange means on the upper end of said threaded sleeve extending radially outwardly from the upper end thereof beyond the outer edge of said threads but of slightly lesser diameter than the outside diameter of said shield ring,

said shield ring being adapted to be removed and said threaded sleeve moved downwardly to move said flange means below the top surface of said finished floor.

2. In combination, a rough floor and a cleanout comprising an internally threaded hollow body embedded in said rough floor with the upper end of said hollow body terminating slightly below the top surface of said rough floor,

an externally threaded sleeve threadably engaging the inside of said hollow body,

and a shield ring on the outside of said sleeve,

said sleeve having a flange extending outwardly beyond the threads thereof, I

said shield ring being of greater outside diameter than the outside diameter of said hollow body,

said shield ring being greater in outside diameter than the outside diameter of said flange,

and a cover for said sleeve,

said shield ring being slightly higher than the thickness of a finished floor adapted to be supported on said rough floor whereby when said shield is removed after said finished floor is in position and said sleeve may be adjusted down to bring the top surface of said cover flush with the top surface of said finished floor and to bring said flange into the space below the top surface of said finished floor into the space formed in said finished floor between said sleeve and said finished floor from which said shield ring was removed.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS THERON E. CONDON, Primary Examiner.

GEORGE E. LOWRANCE, Examiner. 

1. A CLEANOUT COMPRISING AN INTERNALLY THREADED HOLLOW BODY, AN EXTERNALLY THREADED SLEEVE THREADABLY AND VERTICALLY ADJUSTABLY RECEIVED IN THE UPPER END OF SAID HOLLOW BODY, A COVER ON SAID SLEEVE, A SHIELD RING AROUND SAID THREADED SLEEVE IN INTIMATE CONTACT THEREWITH, SAID SHIELD RING BEING EQUAL TO OR GREATER IN VERTICAL DIMENSION THAN THE THICKNESS OF A FINISHED FLOOR ADAPTED TO BE USED WITH SAID CLEANOUT, SAID SHIELD RING BEING OF GREATER OUTSIDE DIAMETER THAN THE OUTSIDE DIAMETER OF SAID HOLLOW BODY, SAID SHIELD RING EXTENDING OUTWARDLY BEYOND THE OUTER PERIPHERAL EDGES OF SAID HOLLOW BODY, SAID SHIELD RING BEING ADAPTED TO BE REMOVED AFTER SAID CLEANOUT IS INSTALLED AND AFTER SAID FINISHED FLOOR IS INSTALLED, AND FLANGE MEANS ON THE UPPER END OF SAID THREADED SLEEVE EXTENDING RADIALLY OUTWARDLY FROM THE UPPER EACH THEREOF BEYOND THE OUTER EDGE OF SAID THREADS BUT OF SLIGHTLY LESSER DIAMETER THAN THE OUTSIDE DIAMETER OF SAID SHIELD RING, SAID SHIELD RING BEING ADAPTED TO BE REMOVED AND SAID THREADED SLEEVE MOVED DOWNWARDLY TO MOVE SAID FLANGE MEANS BELOW THE TOP SURFACE OF SAID FINISHED FLOOR. 